Abc Brings Indy Coverage Up To Speed

Even though the cars are often traveling in excess of 200 mph, the most difficult thing for television to do when it covers auto racing is convey a sense of speed.

For the telecast of the 76th Indianapolis 500 Sunday (11 a.m.-3:30 p.m., Chs. 8, 40) ABC will use cameras that will not only give viewers a feel for the tremendous speeds, but also what it is like to be in the middle of the action.

ABC will use the "lipstick cam" -- so named because of its size and shape. It will be mounted about 4 inches off the ground inside the wall near Turns 2 and 4. "Those cameras give you a low speed shot," said producer Bob Goodrich, "and should give viewers a better sense of what it is like coming around the corners."

Goodrich said ABC also will use "race cams" in the cars of six drivers. Although in-car cameras are nothing new, Goodrich says the new angles that will be used will allow viewers to see the driver and the traffic behind or next to him at the same time.

When in-car cameras were first introduced, it was hard to find a driver who would consent to having one in his car. Now, sponsors pay to have race cams in their cars. ABC is an exception, at least for this Indy, according to Goodrich.

Goodrich was able to pick the cars he wanted to place race cams in, and the group is a who's who, including Rick Mears, Al Unser Jr., Danny Sullivan, Bobby Rahal, Michael Andretti and Mario Andretti.

In all, ABC will use 44 cameras to cover the race, pits, garage and hospital areas, including one in a blimp and another located on a 200-foot crane near Turn 1. The crew will be in excess of 185.

Paul Page will serve as the lead announcer for the telecast, along with Sam Posey and Bobby Unser. This will be Page's fifth Indy 500 for ABC. Previously, Page was the voice of the Indianapolis Speedway Radio Network, back in the days when the race was only carried live on radio, with television restricted to taped coverage.

The remainder of the announcing team consists of Jack Arute, Dr. Jerry Punch, a trauma specialist and a racing analyst for ESPN; and Gary Gerould, who also calls Sacramento Kings games (talk about knowing crashes).

Although ABC cameras and crew will be everywhere, don't expect to see any gruesome shots if an accident occurs.

"If there is an accident and someone is seriously injured or killed, we wouldn't show that kind of footage," Page said. "If we have a shot that we don't feel is in good taste, we won't use it. We have had shots like that in the past that were never seen by anyone."

Although Jovy Marcelo of the Philippines was killed earlier this month in practice when his car hit the wall near Turn 1, Goodrich says the safety and speed of the race often leaves the network with time to fill.

"Every time there is a month with a lot of accidents, we usually have a safe race because the message gets out," Page said.

This will be the 28th consecutive year ABC has televised the Indianapolis 500. Between 1971 and 1985, the race was seen the same day on tape delay. From 1965-70, the race was viewed on "Wide World of Sports."

Last year, 27 million viewers watched some or all of the race.

Giving up on Knicks? New York has a reputation as a great sports town, but when push comes to assault -- a fair description of the Knicks-Bulls series -- it can't touch Chicago. The final game of the much-ballyhooed Knicks-Bulls Eastern Conference series Sunday on NBC drew a 19.1 rating and 39 share in the New York area, compared to a 39.4 rating and 68 share in Chicago. (A rating point is equal to one percent of all television households, while a share represents the percentage of households with televisions in use.)

Boston comes away even worse than New York when compared to Chicago. Consider this: more Windy City residents watched Game 7 of the Celtics-Cavaliers series (15.2 rating, 39 share) than did folks in Boston (13.4 rating and 38 share).

In the Hartford/New Haven market, the Celtics-Cavs Game 7 had a 9 rating and 39 share, while the Knicks-Bulls pulled a 13.1 rating and 32 share.

Lynn making ESPN debut Former Red Sox outfielder Fred Lynn (1974-80) will make his television debut on ESPN May 29 (4 p.m.). Lynn, 40, a nine-time All-Star, will work as an analyst on NCAA College World Series telecasts, joining Tim Brando and Mike Patrick. ESPN, which is covering the College World Series for the 13th consecutive season, will do as many as 13 games, including 10 live. During his collegiate days at USC, Lynn was a member of three College World Series champions (1971-73)